Comfort Zone

From the desk of Teresa Jordan, Executive Director

Netflix is completely changing how most of us watch TV shows and though I am slow coming to the party, I can binge watch with the best of them at times. Netflix is actually set up to keep you watching – the minute one episode ends the next starts; where you left off last time, it will begin again; and its always offering choices based on what you have already watched.

I have been watching a show called “Weekend Aristocrats” and it is more than amusing. First, you have to like old British estates and then you have to be entertained by old British Aristocracy. The thing that got me wondering this week is this – if Netflix is showing me a great list of shows based on what I watch, and Amazon is showing me a great list of items based on what I’ve bought, and Google is showing me ads based on what I’ve searched, it is becoming harder and harder to step outside of our patterns and learn new things.

There is that old saying, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” It is potentially harder now than ever, in a world peppered with information at our fingertips, to purposefully entertain a brand new idea, try a brand new way of doing something or delve into a new kind of show or book that we would never otherwise considered. I guess this means that we have to dig deeper to not let technology lull us into our comfort zone, over and over again.

I think the trick is to seek out a brand new culture, a new perspective, a new way of looking at the world – and try new things. Maybe we should all go down the ethnic aisle at the grocery store, get a book from the mystery section if that’s not usually our thing, ask someone what they really feel about a subject – and then just think about their answer, without offering our perspective. At the very least, a little adventure could broaden our list of shows that we like on Netflix and open our minds to be just a little bit more aware of all the differences around us. Differences are at the heart of community.